2016 Munich shooting

The 2016 Munich attacks were a series of shootings that took place in the city of Munich, Germany on 22 July 2016. At least three men, equipped with assault rifles, attacked the Olympia-Einkaufszentrum shopping mall and killed over nine people, leading to GSG-9 commandos being dispatched to hunt down the killers. The attacked shopping mall is adjacent to the site of the horrific 1972 Munich Massacre, which was the catalyst for Germany's rigorous training of its special forces in counter-terrorism. Their commandos, who had been training for counter-terrorist activities for decades (and who had been on high alert since the 2016 Wurzburg train attack), responded quickly and began a manhunt for the attackers. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the shootings, while others feared that it was an attack by far-right supporters of German nationalism.

Attack
At 5:52 PM on 22 July 2016, men came out of a bathroom in the McDonald's restaurant of the Olympia shopping mall and began to open fire with assault rifles, especially targeting children as a terrorist tactic. Some people heard the attackers shout "Allahu akbar", while others heard them insulting foreigners. The German police had people stay in their homes as they dealt with the situation, having been trained rigorously in counter-terrorism operations. In addition, all transit was shut down to prevent the shooters from escaping. More shots were heard at the Marienplatz Station, and a third crime scene was opened at Isartorplatz in front of a large movie theatre as the attacks continued. CNN reported that the Germans were setting up an operational headquarters to coordinate the activities of their responding policemen, also noting that the GSG-9 counter-terrorist special forces were said to be one of the best counter-terrorism forces worldwide, training for counter-terrorist activities since the 1972 Munich Massacre (which, ironically, occurred just next to the mall).

== Misidentification of the perpetrator(s) ==

Some news outlets and websites reported that "Samuel Hydberg", a "German" nationalist, was responsible for the shootings, but the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks, with their members cheering online. In addition, it was later revelaled that "Samuel Hydberg" was a joke in poor taste that was created by internet comedian Sam Hyde, who was known to take pictures of himself and pretend that he was the lone gunman of several mass shootings, including the 2015 San Bernardino attack. Hyde's creation of the meme, at a time when speculation over the perpetrators was occurring, led to several news outlets erroneously identifying the fictitious Hydberg as the shooter.

However, claims that the attacks were carried out by nationalists did have merit, as some eyewitnesses heard the attackers insulting foreigners. In addition, the news stated that the police would investigate if the ninth victim of the attack was a perpetrator that committed suicide. In Islamist terrorist attacks, the perpetrators never kill themselves without attempting to kill others in the process. Suicides by gunshot are typically carried out by psychopathic mass shooters, while Islamist terrorists typically fight until they are killed, or they use suicide belts to blow themselves up and attempt to kill others in the process.